Ceremony in Brussels: Steinmeier: Stronger Bundeswehr most important government task

Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has described Germany’s armament as the most urgent political project for the coming years. “I am convinced: The most important task of the new German government is to strengthen our Bundeswehr,” he said at a ceremony to join Germany to NATO 70 years ago. A poorly equipped Germany is the greater danger to Europe than a strongly equipped Germany.

“I think practically all of our allies have long been convinced-for us Germans this sentence is much more difficult to accept,” said Steinmeier in the NATO headquarters in Brussels. The Federal President said to the address of the allies, he hoped that this would be understandable in view of German history. Nevertheless, he asked his compatriots to face this new reality.

As a reason, Steinmeier referred to the changed security situation and said: “Germany is called and we heard the call. We understood. You can count on us.”

NATO General Secretary: Germany shows leadership

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that Germany is now a driving force within NATO and made significant contributions to our common security – among other things with the stationing of troops on the eastern flank, fighter jets that protected the sky above the Baltic States, and ships that protected important care routes and critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea. It is crucial that Germany significantly strengthens its defense efforts.

“For the first time in three decades, Germany is investing two percent of its gross domestic product in defense,” said Rutte, also referring to the latest change in the Basic Law in order to further increase defense expenditure. “This is remarkable. Another clear proof of German leadership strength,” praised the former Dutch head of government.

To look at the NATO partner for these developments, Rutte said that there was a time when NATO aimed at “keeping the Germans down”. This is no longer the case today and the Germans are now above. “And that is exactly what we need in the face of growing dangers.” A lot has changed since that day in May 1955 when the then German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer signed the official certificate of accession.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD), who accompanied Steinmeier to Brussels, called on NATO partners to stand together in the face of the Russian threat. Germany is ready for a major contribution to defense. “Germany has made defense ability a top priority. Germany will invest an amount of historical amount in its security,” he says. This is also an investment in the security of the Allies.

Dark security environment

The ceremony was overshadowed to the German NATO joining on May 6, 1955 by the persistent Russian attack war against Ukraine and the uncertain future of NATO. The alliance is currently in a profound change process. The trigger is above all the announcement of the United States to want to assume significantly less security policy responsibility for Europe in the future.

US President Donald Trump recently said that the European Allies should take care of the conventional defense and deterrent of the continent in the future. Only with the nuclear deterrence could everything remain the same.

For the European Allies, developments primarily mean that they have to upgrade massively and have to spend significantly more money for defense. Last year it was the case that the proportion of the United States in the total defense spending of the NATO countries was more than 60 percent.

The party is celebrated a week before the anniversary

The fact that the commemoration for German NATO accession was not organized on May 6th had terminating. A date had to be found on which both Steinmeier and Rutte can. In addition, according to current plans, CDU boss Friedrich Merz is to be elected new Chancellor from the Bundestag on May 6th.

In the coalition agreement, the CDU, CSU and SPD agreed to significantly increase defense spending until the end of the election period. They want to clear the way to the introduction of modern military technology and also expand Germany’s defense ability in space. It was also agreed to create a “military service model based on voluntariness” for the Bundeswehr.

Together with the Greens, the old Bundestag had passed changes in the Basic Law with the necessary two-thirds majority in order to loosen the debt brake for defense spending.

Social debates

Politically and socially, upgrading Germany is no longer a big topic today. In a survey for the ZDF Politbarometer, around three quarters of the respondents and majorities in all party support groups recently increased the financial means for the Bundeswehr and defense.

In 1955 and only ten years after the end of the Second World War, it was different. Opponents in the Federal Republic feared new war risks – and that the goal of German unity would practically deal with reimbursement. Proponents, on the other hand, saw the shortest path of West Germany back to sovereignty. Chancellor Adenauer at the time is rumored by the sentence that a state without the army is not a real state.